Ole Miss, Alcorn State football openers will be televised in primetime
Published 5:45 pm Tuesday, May 18, 2021
- Ole Miss running back Jerrion Ealy (9) carries the ball against Kentucky last season. Ole Miss' 2021 season opener against Louisville on Labor Day will be televised by ESPN, the network announced Tuesday. (Mark Cornelison/UK Athletics)
OXFORD — Ole Miss will begin the 2021 college football season in primetime.
ESPN announced Tuesday the start times for four opening-weekend games on its television schedule, including the Rebels’ opener against Louisville in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff in Atlanta.
Ole Miss and Louisville will play on Labor Day night, Sept. 6 at 7 p.m. in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
No. 2 Alabama and No. 25 Miami will meet for part one of the 2021 Chick-fil-A Kickoff on Saturday, Sept. 4, at 2:30 p.m. on ABC. An expected Top 10 matchup between Clemson and Georgia will follow at 6:30 p.m. on ABC.
Notre Dame will play at Florida State on Sept. 5, at 6:30 p.m.
The ABC Saturday night matchups for the next two weeks of the season will be Washington at Michigan on Sept. 11 and Auburn at Penn State on Sept. 18.
ESPN will also air Texas at Arkansas on Sept. 11 at 6 p.m.
ESPN also announced a six-year agreement with the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and Southwestern Athletic Conference to continue broadcasting the MEAC/SWAC Challenge Kickoff and the Celebration Bowl matching both league’s champions. Both games take place in Atlanta.
This year’s MEAC/SWAC Challenge will be on Aug. 28 and will feature North Carolina Central vs. Alcorn State in primetime on ESPN.
Future matchups include Alabama State vs. Howard (2022), South Carolina State vs. Jackson State (2023), and Florida A&M vs. Norfolk State (2024).
The Cricket Celebration Bowl, in its seventh year, will be played Dec. 18, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.